Ernie Freeman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ernie Freeman (born 16 August 1922, Cleveland, Ohio - died 16 May 1981, Hawaii[1]) was an American pianist and arranger.
In 1935 he began playing in local Cleveland area nightclubs, and also formed a classical music trio for local social functions with his father and his sister Evelyn. Around 1939, he and Evelyn formed a new band, The Evelyn Freeman Swing Band, with fellow teenagers from Cleveland Central High School. Evelyn played piano, while Ernie played saxophone and also began writing arrangements for the band. The band began a regular engagement at the Circle Ballroom in Cleveland, and broadcast shows for WHK radio station. In 1942, most of the band, apart from Evelyn, joined the US Navy together, and became the first all-black Navy Band, called "The Gobs Of Swing", with Ernie as its leader.[2]
After leaving the Navy in 1945 Ernie entered the Cleveland Institute of Music and then moved to New York City. After a spell as arranger for Woody Herman he joined the Ernie Fields Orchestra, playing the piano. Other members of the band included saxophonists Earl Bostic and Plas Johnson, guitarist René Hall, and drummer Earl Palmer. In 1951 Freeman also began playing with the Billy Hadnott Sextet, but left in 1954 to form his own combo with Johnson, Palmer and guitarist Irving Ashby. In 1955 they released their first record, "No No Baby" on the Middle-Tone label. They also recorded with a vocal group, The Voices, who included Bobby Byrd and Earl Nelson of The Hollywood Flames (and later Bob & Earl).[2]
Freeman played on numerous early rock and R&B sessions in Los Angeles, California in the 1950s, particularly on the Specialty, Modern, and Aladdin labels, as well as for white artists such as Duane Eddy and Bobby Vee. He played piano on The Platters' "The Great Pretender" in 1955, and began releasing a number of instrumental records of his own. These included "Jivin' Around" (#5 on the R&B chart in 1956), and his cover version of Bill Justis' "Raunchy", his biggest solo success, which reached #4 on the pop chart and #1 on the R&B chart in 1957.
In 1958 The Ernie Fields Orchestra, including Freeman, became the house band for the newly formed Rendezvous record label. In 1961, with Palmer, Johnson and René Hall, they began recording as B. Bumble and the Stingers, and Freeman played piano on their first hit, "Bumble Boogie" (but not their later hit, "Nut Rocker"). He also performed with and arranged for The Routers and their parallel group The Marketts.[2]
He continued a successful session career in the 1960s, appearing on material by Frank Sinatra ("Strangers in the Night", Grammy Award in 1967), Connie Francis ("Jealous Heart", "Addio, mi' amore"), Dean Martin, and Petula Clark ("This is My Song", "For Love"), and becoming musical director with Reprise Records.
In 1970 he contributed string arrangements to Simon and Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water album, before his retirement later in the decade. He died in 1981.[2]
